Clarksville, Ark.-Seven University of the Ozarks baseball players received All-Conference honors from the American Southwest Conference, it was announced Wednesday (May 10).
Junior outfielder Justin Crider headlined the group with a First Team selection. Senior outfielder Andrew Beck and junior utility player Patrick Clifford made the Third Team. Freshman First baseman Chase Edwards, junior second baseman Josh Woolly, sophomore third baseman Dakota Ebarb and junior catcher Bryce Elder each made the Honorable Mention Team.
Crider, a native of Dallas, Texas, led the team in slugging percentage (.635), triples (4), doubles (17), runs (40), total bases (94), stolen bases (7) and walks (21). He finished second in hitting (.365), home runs (5) and hits (54), and third in on-base percentage (.458) and RBI (23). Crider hit for the cycle with a 4-for-5 performance against Grinnell College March 18. He finished with 14 multiple-hit games and six multiple-RBI games. He tripled and homered against Grinnell College and Austin College. He drove in four runs in the Austin College game. He had 12 games with two or more runs, including four games with three runs. He went 4-for-4 against McMurry University, and against Hardin-Simmons had three doubles in game three of the series. At the end of the regular season, he led the ASC in doubles, was fifth in total bases and slugging percentage, seventh in runs and third in triples.
Beck, a native of Conway, Ark., finished second on the team in RBI (26) and home runs (5). He finished among the team's top-5 in hits (37), doubles (8), slugging percentage (.508), batting (.314), runs (19), total bases (60) and walks (17). He posted ten multiple-hit games and drove in two or more runs eight times. He homered and doubled while driving in five runs against Grinnell College. He had three hits against five different opponents. He finished his career as one of the top players in program history, ranking sixth in career batting (.357), third in career hits (187), second in career doubles (40), fourth in career triples (5), eighth in career RBI (94) and fourth in career total bases (261). His single-season rankings at Ozarks include batting average (.429 - 2nd), hits (57 - 7th) and doubles (18 - 2nd ). He is a four-time All-Conference performer and was an All-Region player his sophomore season.
Clifford, a native of Grand Prairie, Texas, finished third on the team in batting (.343) and slugging percentage (.582). He also recorded eight doubles and two home runs, including a dramatic walk-off homer against Texas Dallas. He posted 15 RBI and 23 hits. He had eight multiple-hit games over the final 14 games of the season. He had a 2-for-5, four-RBI performance against Hardin-Simmons. He drove in three runs three other times during the season, including a three-hit, three-RBI effort against Sul Ross State.
Edwards, a native of Chandler, Ariz., had one of the top freshman seasons in program history. The left-handed hitter led the team with a .390 batting average, and recorded a team-best 57 hits, 32 RBI and six home runs. He finished second on the team in slugging percentage (.582), runs (27), total bases (85) and on-base percentage (.465). He also had 10 doubles, third-most on the team. He homered and drove in five runs against McMurry and posted a three-hit, four-RBI game against LeTourneau. He had 19 multiple-hit games and finished the season on a 15-game hitting streak. During that stretch, he hit .500 (29-of-58). He set two freshman records for the program and tied another, including most hits (57), most total bases (85) and most home runs (6-tie). At the end of the ASC regular season, he ranked sixth in batting and hits, and ninth in on-base percentage.
Woolly, a native of Spiro, Okla., drove in 26 runs, second-most on the team, and recorded 11 doubles, also second-most on the team. He ranked third in hits (40) and home runs (3). He owned a .265 batting average, .411 slugging percentage and posted 62 total bases. He recorded 11 multiple-hit games. Against Grinnell College, he went 4-for-6 with six RBI and three runs. He had a 4-for-5 performance against Hardin-Simmons.
Ebarb, a native of Lavon, Texas, hit .299 with five doubles, 14 RBI and 26 hits. He also posted a .378 on-base percentage. He homered once and ended the year with 34 total bases. He had seven multiple-hit games, including a 5-for-5 performance against Grinnell College. He drove in three runs behind a two-hit effort against Hendrix College. He also had a three-hit effort against Louisiana College.
Elder, a native of Ottawa, Kansas, hit .270 with 20 hits and 15 runs. He owned a .969 fielding percentage. Elder led the team with a .518 on-base percentage. He also led the team in hit by pitches with 22. He ranked among the top-10 in NCAA III in hit by pitch and hit by pitch per game. He posted five two-hit performances during the season. Elder was the league-leader in hit by pitch.
